Texangals

And here's hooman face of Texangals - that’s me, the “Texan” and “gal” who shows, breeds, and advocates for the American Toy Manchester. The “Texangals” kennel name came out of my early years in the breed when I lived in the UK and bought my first English Toy Terrier. I was referred to as “that Texan gal”, and, having now returned to Central Texas, I’ve been nurturing my line of dogs ever since. A Texangals dog will be built on a foundation of champions, thorough health testing, and generational improvement to conformation and temperament. My dogs live in my home; the puppies whelp in my closet; I sleep next to them on a mattress until they get mobile, and when they’re old enough, they have a big pen in the living room where they slot into our daily routines. Puppy Culture, trips to the shops and restaurant patios, socialization classes - every puppy gets treated as though I’m planning to keep it myself. I have some litters expected in December so we are taking inquiries now. Go to...

In mid-December every year, one of the biggest dog shows in the country takes place in Orlando. It's called the Royal Canin show, but even though it's only a weekend show, the whole week before is full of smaller shows at the same venue, including the Manchester Terrier specialty where large numbers of our breed turned up. The event is tiring and requires some stamina, but we also enjoy ourselves at night, going to restaurants or bars or even doughnut shops at 10:30 pm! I do wish we'd come away with more ribbons than the 2nd and 2 x 4ths, but it was an event not to be missed, a chance to meet people you've only ever heard of or seen on Facebook, and to see a large number of dogs to compare toplines, movement, head shapes, and all kinds of things that are hard to appreciate until you see a big group of them, side by side. The weather in Florida in December is a lovely change from dreary, cold winter, though there was more than once than I got caught i...

With Christmas looming, what do I do? Drive 1100 miles from Texas to Florida of course! Come and read my debrief of the AKC National Dog Show in Orlando. Road Trip Puppy! Orlando sees the annual pilgrimage of doggy people for the AKC National Championship dog show. I went along to a) socialize Zoot for road trips, motels, and the dog show atmosphere, b) to meet a lot of the main players in the Manchester Terrier (both Toy and Standard, and agility!) scene, and c) volunteer on the Meet the Breeds stand. I was very heartened that Zoot was a good traveller. She slept a lot in the car, chewed on her bones, discovered the taste for a big chunk of natural low-salt beef jerky. At the show, she took it all in without being nervous. In the motel rooms, she had quite a good time in whizzing around the rooms with her toys, and best of all, didn't bark whenever there was a bump, a noise, or someone talking in the motel rooms. Meeting the breeders and show people was my high...